Cabinet drawer stop construction



Jan. 10, 1956 MOCK CABINET DRAWER STOP CONSTRUCTION 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 22, 1953 FIG-.3.

Z2 INVENTOR.

J 0 SZEPH P. MOCK BY 7% %ZQW%WW Jan. 10, 1956 Filed May 22. 1953 J. P. MocK 2,730,423

CABINET DRAWER STOP CONSTRUCTION 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG.6.

INVENTOR. JOSEPH P MOCK wwwwm United States Patent F CABINET DRAWER sror CONSTRUCTION Joseph P. Mock, Logan, Ohio Application May 22, 1953, Serial No. 356,853 1 Claim; I (Cl. 312-348) in these drawers and, due to the shortness of the drawers,

danger of damage to or complete destruction of the tools is ever present if the drawers accidentally slide out of or are completely pulled from the cabinet.

T An object of this invention is to provide a cabinet and drawer construction which will operate to directthe users attention to the fact that a drawer has been moved outwardlyas far as it should be moved with safety to the contents.

Another object of the invention is to provide a cabinet and drawer construction in which the drawers will be frictionally held in fully closed condition and stopped in their opening movement immediately prior to their complete removal from the cabinet.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a cabinet and drawer construction in which recesses are formed in the sides of the drawer adjacent the front and rear ends for the reception of spring-pressed plungers carried by the cabinet, the engagement of the plungers in the recesses serving to prevent accidental opening movement of the drawer when it is completely closed and unintentional complete withdrawal of the drawer during the opening thereof, the plungers being so formed and engaged with the recesses in the drawers that the latter may be opened and removed from the cabinet when desired merely by the exercise of an additional amount of force.

Another object of the invention is to provide a cabinet and drawer construction wherein the cabinet is provided at the sides of the opening for the drawer with springpressed catches of the type known to the trade as bullet catches and the drawer sides are formed with grooves to receive the projecting portions of the catches, the grooves terminating in recesses into which the projecting' portions of the catches will move when the recesses register therewith, this engagement being suificient to call the users attention to the fact that the drawer has reached a certain position in its movement and requiring the user to exert additional force to move the drawer from such position, the rear ends of the drawer being provided with inclined surfaces for engaging the plungers and moving them out of the way to facilitate the replacement of the drawers in the cabinet.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings wherein a preferred embodiment of the invention is clearly shown.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a cabinet and drawers 2,730,423 Patented Jan. 10, 1956 formed in accordance with the invention, one of the drawers being shown in open position;

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of one of the drawers removed from the cabinet;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken through a portion of the cabinet and a drawer with the latter shown in closed position;

Fig. 4 is a similar viewv showing the drawer in open position;

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view taken through one end of the cabinet and several drawers on the plane indicated by the line VV of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a detail horizontal sectional view on an enlarged scale taken through one of the spring-pressed catches and adjacent drawer and cabinet pieces on the plane indicated by the line VI-VI of Fig. 5.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the complete cabinet is indicated generally by the numeral 20. it may be formed from any suitable material, satisfactory samples having been constructed, of wood. Obviously, design changes may be required in the cabinet when the material is changed but the principles of the invention will remain the same.

The cabinet illustrated'includes bottom, end, back and top walls, 21, 22, 23 and 24, respectively. In machinists tool chests, a bodily removable front wall is frequently provided but in the present instance none has been shown, since it forms no part of the invention. The walls 21 to 24, inclusive, are arranged to provide a chamber for receiving drawers designated by the numeral 25. If desired, horizontal partitions could be provided to divide the chamber into separate sections for each drawer but since such construction forms no part of the invention it is not iliustrated either.

Each drawer includes front, back, end and bottom walls 26, 27, 28 and 29, respectively, the sizes of the drawers being determined by the use to which the device is to be placed. As shown in the drawings, the inner faces of the end walls 22 of the cabinet are provided with drawer guides 31 which extend horizontally and are formed for disposition in grooves 32 extending longitudinally of the drawer end walls 28. This interengagement of guides and grooves provides for the sliding movement of the drawers in the cabinet. Thus far described the cabinet and drawer construction is substantially conventional.

Not infrequently drawers of conventional construction are accidentally pulled completely out of their cabinets and their contents spilled on the floor. If the drawer contains fragile articles or those which are to be maintained in a certain order, the articles may be destroyed or otherwise rendered unfit for use. As pointed out previously, the object of this invention is to provide means for preventing or rendering the accidental complete removal of the drawers less likely. This means includes a plurality of recesses formed in the drawer end walls and resiliently urged plungers carried by the end walls of the cabinet for reception by the recesses.

As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, each end wall 28 of each drawer is formed above the guide groove 32 with a recess 33 near its front end and a second recess 34 adjacent its rear end. These recesses are comparatively deep and are provided to receive the plunger 35 of a catch device 36 disposed in a socket formed in the adjacent cabinet end wall 22. The catch devices of the type shown are sometimes referred to as bullet catches because of the rounded end on the plunger 35. This rounded end permits the plunger to ride over raised surfaces by being forced into the casing 37 against the resistance of a spring 38 disposed between the inner surface of the plunger and the inner end of the casing 37. The catch is shown in sec tion in Fig. 6.

The recesses 33 and 34 and the catch 36 are so located enemas that when the drawer is fully closed, the plunger 35 will be projected into recess 33 and frietionally hold the drawer shut. Normal movement and handling of the cabinet will not cause the drawer to open. But when a pulling force of sufiicient intensity is applied to the drawer, the plungers will be moved bacl; into their casings and the drawer will slide open. When the recesses 34 register with the catches 36, the plungers will snap into these reccsses and exert friction to oppose further movement 01 the drawer. The users sense of feeling will tell him that the drawer is opened as wide as it may be with safety and he will then discontinue the application of force.

Should the complete removal of the drawer be desired increased force may be applied when the plungers 35 are disposed in the recesses 34. The rear edges of these recesses will cause the plungers to move into their casings against the force of their springs and the drawer may then be withdrawn from the cabinet. The rear edges of the drawer ends are formed with bevelled surfaces 39 to engage the plungers 35 and move them into the casings to permit the reinsertion of the drawer into the cabinet. When the recesses 34 again register with the catches the drawer may be normally operated. The sides of the drawer are relieved as at 40 between the recesses 33 and 34 so that undue resistance will not be exerted by the plungers to the normal movement of the drawer. it should be obvious that if the edges of the recesses or the surfaces engaged by the plungers should tend to wear unduly suitable reinforcing material could be applied at the roper places to prevent this action. It will be noted, that the recesses 34 and the catches are so positioned that the drawer will be securely supported in the guides when the drawer is fully opened.

The construction is simple, compact and eificient. It is not exposed to normal view and will not readily get fit 4 out of order or require an unusual amount of service. The advantages will more than outweigh the increase in cost of the cabinet because of its addition.

While the embodiment of the present invention as herein disclosed constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other forms might be adopted, all coming within the claim which follows.

I claim:

In a cabinet, means forming a drawer-receiving recess with opposed side members; a drawer with side walls, said drawer being disposed for movement into and out of said recess; spring-pressed plunger means supported by said side members for movement into and out of said recess; and means forming shoulders adjacent the front and rear ends of the side walls of said drawer for engagement with said spring-pressed plunger means, said shoulders facing the front of said drawer and cooperating with said plunger means when in engagement therewith to resist movement of the drawer outwardly of said cabinet, the shoulders adjacent the rear ends of the side walls extending a greater distance toward the side members than the shoulders adjacent the front ends of such side wall so that said plunger means will offer greater resistance to removal of the drawer from the cabinet than to movement of said drawer from closed to open position.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNiTED STATES PATENTS 1,626,354 Pilla Apr. 26, 1927 1,654,052 Rand Dec. 27, 1927 1,713,715 Ross May 21, 1929 1,969,749 Harsh Aug. 14, 1934 2,288,637 Mauro July 7, 1942 2,653,072 Press Sept. 22, 1953 

